[14] Her father, Bessarabian-born Leon (Lipa) Halfin, migrated to Belgium in 1929 from Chişinău, Kingdom of Romania (later Moldova) and later sought refuge from the Nazis in Switzerland.

[15][1] Her mother was Greek-born Liliane Nahmias, from Thessaloniki, a Holocaust survivor, who was initially captured by the Nazis while she was a member of the Resistance during World War II.

[4] She left Paris for Italy to apprentice with the textile manufacturer Angelo Ferretti in his factory, where she learned about cut, color and fabric.

A year after marrying, Fürstenberg began designing women's clothes: "The minute I knew I was about to be Egon's wife, I decided to have a career.

[23][24] After moving to New York, she met high-profile Vogue editor Diana Vreeland, who declared her designs "absolutely smashing".

[25] In 1974, she introduced the knitted jersey "wrap dress", which became an iconic piece in women's fashion; it is included in the collection of the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

[citation needed] Fürstenberg relaunched her company in 1997, and reintroduced the wrap dress, which gained popularity with a new generation of women.

Initially, the relaunch was a failure but, with the appointment of Paula Sutter as president of the brand, it was seemingly restored to its heyday of the mid-seventies.

[4] In 2009, Michelle Obama wore the DVF signature "Chain Link" print wrap dress on the official White House Christmas card.

[36] Her clothes have been worn by celebrities including Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Beckinsale, Madonna, Tina Brown, Jessica Alba, Susan Sarandon, Priyanka Chopra, Jennifer Lopez and Whitney Houston.

[46] Fürstenberg is a director of the Diller – von Furstenberg Family Foundation, which provides support to nonprofit organizations in the areas of community building, education, human rights, arts, health and the environment.

[49] In 2006, she was elected President of The Council of Fashion Designers of America, (CFDA), after winning the Andre Leon Talley Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005.

[citation needed] Fürstenberg sits on the board of Vital Voices, a women's leadership organization,[50] and served as one of the project chairs for New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's review of the future of NYC's Fashion industry, prepared by New York City Economic Development Corporation.

Podcast guests include Kris Jenner, Elaine Welteroth, Karlie Kloss, Priyanka Chopra, Martine Rothblatt, Teo Wan Lin,[54] among others.

The documentary features interviews with Oprah, Hillary Clinton, Marc Jacobs and other notable artists and designers.

[65] On 28 February 2020, von Fürstenberg was made a Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur for her contributions to fashion, women's leadership, and philanthropy.

She was presented the award by Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank, in a ceremony at the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs headquarters on the Quai d'Orsay.